What’s new this week? Well, we know that American singer Britney Spears was sporting a new hairstyle at a concert in Las Vegas, according to The Huffington Post.
I actually I quite like her as a redhead – what do you reckon?
But if you were taught that the verb love is always used in the simple form [eg I love, You love, She loves], you might be horrified to see the Huffington Post asking its readers for their opinion of her new hairstyle using the present continuous form:
“Are you loving it?”
“Wait a minute,” you’re thinking, “I thought ‘love’ is simple.”
The Maccas Effect
Well, you’re right. Kinda. Usually love is simple, but on occasion it can be continuous…
The thing is, McDonald’s used “I’m lovin’ it” as their slogan a few years back, and this ‘continuous love’ entered into the language.
I’m sure you already know about their successful slogan. But did you know that “I’m lovin’ it” had appeared previously in a Justin Timberlake song..?
Apparently Maccas jumped onto the phrase and used it and hired Justin Timberlake as part of their new campaign.
It even survived his controversial appearance with Janet Jackson during the Super Bowl television coverage, where her breast was shown to the whole nation (which, btw, gave birth to the terrible new term wardrobe malfunction).
Here’s the videotape (of the song, not her breast):
“So can I say love in the continuous form?”
I’d only heard Americans saying “I’m loving it” until I started to say it too on occasion. And I’ve heard this form being used by other Aussies as well.
But I don’t know if it’s reached the UK yet. It will, the only question is when.
How it’s used though is more about enjoyment than real love.
You’ll hear people chatting in a cafe and saying the following:
I’m really loving this cake.
I’m really loving this weather.
I’m really liking this.
You might also hear it in the negative:
I’m not really liking this.
I’m not loving this at all.
But so far I haven’t heard anyone say:
I’m really hating this Big Mac.
“But I don’t want to sound like, like, a 19 year old.”
I hear ya. If you’re a lawyer travelling to New York for a conference, it might seem out of place to say “I’m really loving this heat.”
If you’re at college in California, then why not.
That’s why Maccas jumped onto it. It’s a ‘young’ phrase.
The Real Takeaway
Do you read the news in English? If you don’t, you’re missing out on the chance to see English in action, and you won’t be able to ‘spot’ any new words or trends.
If you just rely on your coursebook and your teacher, then you miss some of the colour in learning a language.
So why not click on your fave news site and see what other phrases you can find..? 😉
Read more
I’m lovin’ it – songfacts
The Present Simple in Everyday Conversation
Word Bank
What do you reckon = What do you think
To sport (a piece of clothing) – to wear something which you would like people to like or notice
Maccas – in Australia McDonald’s is called this. We have to find a nickname for everything, it seems..
Kinda – kind of (like ‘sorta’ is from ‘sort of’)
To give birth to – you usually give birth to a baby, but it can also be used to talk about a new idea which has been created
What do you think?